Food: Food Banks

Debate between Lord Martin of Springburn and Lord De Mauley

Tuesday 26th November 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, the gist of the noble Lord’s question was whether the Government think that it is okay to rely on the voluntary sector. The answer is no. The Government recognise the good work of charitable organisations that redistribute surplus food, but the Government also have a role. It is not the Government’s role to set prices, but we work to promote open and competitive markets that help to offer the best prices to consumers. Through Healthy Start and other initiatives, we provide a nutritional safety net in a way that encourages healthy eating among more than 500,000 pregnant women and children under four years old in very low-income and disadvantaged families throughout the UK.

[Lord Martin of Springburn (CB)]

My Lords, is it not the case that we are subjecting people—decent men and women—to great indignities by having them queue up for food at the food banks, and that we should find some other way of helping families in need?

Horsemeat and Food Fraud

Debate between Lord Martin of Springburn and Lord De Mauley

Monday 11th February 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, I could not have put it better myself and, as I explained, my right honourable friend has been in touch not only with the European Commissioner today but with Ministers from the various other European member states involved. It is extremely important that we collaborate very closely with them.

[Lord Martin of Springburn]

My Lords, given that it was our Irish neighbours who notified us of this problem, do they have a better safeguarding system than ours?

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, the Irish were acting on intelligence. They conducted their test and, lo and behold, they found horsemeat. We had not received similar intelligence but I have no doubt that our testing regime is absolutely rigorous.

Employment Law

Debate between Lord Martin of Springburn and Lord De Mauley

Monday 21st May 2012 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, I say to the noble Baroness, Lady Turner, that, although we will not go so far as to reconsider the whole thing, in the consultation we are taking account of comments such as the one she has made.

[Lord Martin of Springburn]

My Lords, the one thing that employers want is stability. I have noted that every time there is a change of Government, there has been a change in the employment laws. That cannot help. It should be borne in mind that in many of our cities, including my native city of Glasgow, unemployment is climbing. The Government are encouraging people who are out of work to move to other parts of the country. They will not do that if they feel insecure and there is a possibility that they will be sacked. It must be borne in mind that it is the small companies which we are depending on to get people into the Labour market. I understand that it is consultation and I hope that he bears that in mind. Apprentices who are taken on as trainees are employees like everyone else. It would be a sad day if a young apprentice were taken on to a job and lost out on not only the job but the apprenticeship. Will the Minister ensure that there are no further leaks from departments? That was a justified complaint when the Conservatives were in opposition. We should not have documents leaked from government departments.

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, in response to the first point made by the noble Lord, Lord Martin, about the importance of stability for employers, I definitely agree with him. The question we are addressing is whether the scales have tipped too far against growth. That is what must matter to all of us, surely. With regard to the noble Lord’s comments on apprenticeships, I share his enthusiasm for them and agree with him on that point.